Review: Winter Solstice by Elin Hildebrand (audio)

Title: Winter Solstice

Author: Elin Hilderbrand

Series: Winter, #4

Narrator: Erin Bennett

Published: October 2017, Hachette Audio

Length: 8 hours 41 minutes

Source: Library

Summary:

Raise one last glass with the Quinn Family at the Winter Street Inn.

It’s
been too long since the entire Quinn family has been able to celebrate
the holidays under the same roof, but that’s about to change. With Bart
back safe and sound from Afghanistan, the Quinns are preparing for a
holiday more joyous than any they’ve experienced in years. And Bart’s
safe return isn’t the family’s only good news: Kevin is enjoying married
life with Isabelle; Patrick is getting back on his feet after paying
his debt to society; Ava thinks she’s finally found the love of her
life; and Kelly is thrilled to see his family reunited at last. But it
just wouldn’t be a Quinn family gathering if things went smoothly. A
celebration of everything we love–and some of the things we
endure–about the holidays, WINTER SOLSTICE is Elin Hilderbrand at her
festive best.

My thoughts: This is the fourth and final book in Elin Hilderbrand’s Winter series and I am so bummed! I absolutely fell in love with the Quinn family and loved being able to visit Nantucket these past four years during the winter. 

Before I go any further…I will say that to fully appreciate this series, I think you really should read these books in order. The books are quite short – all less than 300 pages – and they are rather quick reads. The character development builds from the first book, with each one adding on a little more, and that really is the heart of this series, and this last one really does tie everything up, for good or bad – all loose ends are wrapped up as we bid the Quinn family one last goodbye. But of course, that’s just my opinion.

So, here we are, the fourth book – a bonus book in what was supposed to originally be a trilogy – of an outstanding series…a series about what can only be called a dysfunctional family. Don’t get me wrong – I loved the Quinn family…but they were dysfunctional. But that’s what made them so endearing because they weren’t this picture-perfect family. They had issues – all of them! And in this latest book, we get one last chance to see what they are up to. Most of them are, as usual, in some sort of limbo – about to make a big decision that will affect the rest of their life. But that’s not to say the book isn’t without it’s usual drama – because there is plenty of that, too.

There are also a few cameo’s throughout the book of some minor characters who were part of story lines in earlier books. I liked this…I liked seeing them one last time, having them pop in again as a final goodbye. But the best cameo by far was Fast Eddie and his family. If you’ve read The Rumor, one of Elin’s summer books than you know all about him…and if you haven’t – you really should (it came out in 2015). I loved seeing him in this book and I believe this was the first time Elin has done a cross-over like that with her characters.

This book has all the feels…it will make you laugh and smile and it will most likely also have you shedding a few tears. It is a fitting ending to a great series and while I am sad to see it end, I am happy to report that Elin Hilderbrand will be writing another series…YAY!!! I absolutely love her books – I have read everything she has written to date and have met her numerous times. She is genuine and charming and her books are the perfect balance of fun with a little substance. 

Audio thoughts: Erin Bennett really does a great job narrating this book. I had listened to the previous book and really enjoyed that narration, so I decided to listen to this one as well. Erin gives each character their own unique voice, her pacing is good and she uses just the right amount of emotion in her voice as needed. 

Books in this series: 

1. Winter Street
2. Winter Stroll
3. Winter Storms 
4. Winter Solstice